10 Essential Public Health Services
The 10 Essential Public Health Services (EPHS) describe the public health activities that all communities should undertake. For the past 25 years, the EPHS have served as a well-recognized framework for carrying out the mission of public health. The EPHS framework was originally released in 1994 and more recently updated in 2020. The revised version is intended to bring the framework in line with current and future public health practice.
The revised EPHS framework was released on September 9, 2020, as a result of a collaborative effort by the Public Health National Center for Innovations (PHNCI) and the de Beaumont Foundation, who convened a task force of public health experts, leaders, and practitioners and engaged the public health community in activities to inform the changes. The task force also included experts from federal agencies, including CDC, which were instrumental in establishing and supporting the original EPHS framework. Details about the process to update the EPHS can be found on the PHNCI website, along with accompanying materials.
Essential Public Health Services (Revised, 2020)
The 10 Essential Public Health Services provide a framework for public health to protect and promote the health of all people in all communities. To achieve equity, the Essential Public Health Services actively promote policies, systems, and overall community conditions that enable optimal health for all and seek to remove systemic and structural barriers that have resulted in health inequities. Such barriers include poverty, racism, gender discrimination, ableism, and other forms of oppression. Everyone should have a fair and just opportunity to achieve optimal health and well-being.
- Assess and monitor population health status, factors that influence health, and community needs and assets
- Investigate, diagnose, and address health problems and hazards affecting the population
- Communicate effectively to inform and educate people about health, factors that influence it, and how to improve it
- Strengthen, support, and mobilize communities and partnerships to improve health
- Create, champion, and implement policies, plans, and laws that impact health
- Utilize legal and regulatory actions designed to improve and protect the public’s health
- Assure an effective system that enables equitable access to the individual services and care needed to be healthy
- Build and support a diverse and skilled public health workforce
- Improve and innovate public health functions through ongoing evaluation, research, and continuous quality improvement
- Build and maintain a strong organizational infrastructure for public health
EPHS Launch Event
On September 9, 2020, the de Beaumont Foundation and Public Health National Center for Innovations hosted a virtual launch for the revised 10 Essential Public Health Services. View the complete launch event recording below. Listen to remarks from José T. Montero, MD, MHCDS, then-Director of CDC’s former Center for State, Tribal, Local, and Territorial Support (now the National Center for State, Tribal, Local, and Territorial Public Health Infrastructure and Workforce).
10 Essential Public Health Services – Full
Provides a detailed description of each Essential Public Health Service
10 Essential Public Health Services – One Pager
Provides a brief one-page summary of the 10 Essential Public Health Services
10 Essential Public Health Services – Graphics
Contains downloadable graphics for promotion
Examples of How the Social Determinants of Health Can Be Addressed Through the 10 Essential Public Health Services
Learn how the EPHS can incorporate interventions to modify social determinants of health—the conditions in the places where people are born, live, learn, work, play, worship, and age.
Environmental Public Health and the 10 Essential Services
Learn how environmental health program activities can help deliver the 10 Essential Public Health Services in communities and support public health accreditation.
